Valve operating arrangement for internal combustion reciprocating engines

ABSTRACT

A valve operating arrangement for an internal combustion reciprocating engine having a combustion chamber shaped to permit the maximum feasible distance for travel of fuel spray from the spray nozzle tip, the spray nozzle being located so as to direct the fuel spray away from the combustion chamber walls clear of the piston and toward the cylinder head. The top of the piston and the top of the cylinder are at an angle to the axis of the cylinder, and the combustion chamber is on the long side of the cylinder. The exhaust and intake valves have their stems positioned normal to the combustion chamber, the engine camshaft being located between the exhaust and intake valve stems. Valve actuating rocker arms are partly rotatable on a rocker arm shaft located above and parallel to the camshaft. The rocker arms are equipped with shoes to contact the cams. The rocker arms have screw adjustable ball and socket slidable components with the valve stems, and there is a locking means for the adjustable screw.

United States Patent Treiber Oct. 24, 1972 [54] VALVE OPERATING ARRANGEMENT 7 FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION Primary Examiner-A1 Lawrence Smith RECIPROCATING ENGINES A rneyFrease & Bishop [72] Inventor: Otis D. Treiber, 3080 Stanley Ave.-, TR!

Santa Cruz, Calif. 95060 [57] ABS CT A valve operating arrangement for an internal com- [22] Ffled March 1971 bustion reciprocating engine having a combustion [21] Appl, No,; 126,841 chamber shaped to permit the maximum feasible distance for travel of fuel spray from the spray nozzle Related pp Data ,tip, the spray nozzle being located so as to'direct the [62] Division of 794,555, Jan 28 1969 fuel spray away from the combustion chamber walls Pat 3 592 172 'clear of the piston and toward the cylinder head. The top of the piston and the top of the cylinder are at an 0 l. 2 R, angle to the axis Of the Cylinder, and the Combustion [52] U S C l /3 123/191 M chamber is on the long side of the cylinder. The ex- 151 1m. 01 ..F01l1/04,F01l 1/18 F02b 9/16 and intake valves have their stems PSitimd [58] Field of Search ..123/90.44 90.27 32 191 M mmal cmbustin amber, the engine camshaft being located between the exhaust and intake valve stems. Valve actuating rocker arms are [56] References cued partly rotatable on a rocker arm shaft located above UNITED STATES PATENTS and parallel to the camshaft. The rocker arms are equipped with shoes to contact the cams. The rocker Krels arms have Screw adjustable and socket Slidable 2,800,118 7/1957 Scherenberg ..123/32 components with the valve Stems and there is a g; locking means for the adjustable screw. 3,532,080 10/1970 Saruto ..123/90.27 X 1 Claim, 11 Drawing Figures PATENTEDum 2'4 1972 SHEET 1 [IF 3 .INVENTOR. 0% D. Trei/ber ama/QM ATTORNEYS PATENTEBum-24 m2 SHEET 2 0F 3 ATTORNEYS PATENTEDHCI 24 1912- SHEET 3 BF 3 INVENTOR. D. Tre iber ATTORNEYS VALVE OPERATING ARRANGEIVIENT FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION RECIPROCATING ENGINES CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a division of my copending application for internal combustion reciprocating engine, Ser. No. 794,555, filed Jan. 28, 1969 and issued as US. Pat. No. 3,592,172.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The invention relates to valve operating arrangements for internal combustion reciprocating engines in which liquid fuel is sprayed into the combustion chamber and ignited therein, and more particularly to a valve operating arrangement for such an engine in which the combustion chamber is located in one side of the cylinder at the upper end thereof and in which the upper ends of the piston are located at an angle to the axis thereof.

The valves are arranged at the side of the cylinder head instead of in line with the crankshaft, as in usual practice. There is a wider spread of the valves due to the angle and overlap which permits the camshaft to be located between the valve stems. This unique feature contributes considerably toward the success of the combustion system.

2. Description of the Prior Art The most pertinent prior art of which I know are the references cited in the parent application. However, none of these patents discloses an arrangement of valves at the side of the cylinder head or the camshaft located between the valve stems or symmetrical opposite side rocker arms swinging on a common rocker shaft above the camshaft.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In general terms, the invention may be briefly described as comprising a valve operating arrangement for an internal combustion reciprocating engine, each cylinder of which and the piston therein have their tops located at an angle to the axis thereof, the cylinder head being located at the same angle.

A combustion chamber is formed partly in the long side of the piston and partly in the adjacent side of the cylinder near the top thereof. A spray nozzle is provided for spraying liquid fuel into the combustion chamber and a spark plug, glow plug, cold plug, hot spot or pin, any of various kinds of catalysts or other means of ignition, is located in the combustion chamber in position to ignite the fuel spray during the early part of the fuel injection period.

The spray nozzle is so disposed that the fuel spray does not come into contact with the relatively cool combustion chamber walls and is directed clear of the piston and toward the cylinder head.

The exhaust and intake valves have their stems positioned normal to the combustion chamber, the engine camshaft being located between the exhaust and intake valve stems. Valve actuating rocker arms, partly rotatable on a rocker arm shaft, are located above and parallel to the camshaft. The rocker arms are equipped with shoes to contact the cams and have screw adjustable ball and socket slidable components with the valve stems, and locking means for the adjustable screw.

It is an object of the invention to provide a valve operating arrangement for an internal combustion reciprocating engine in which the top of the piston and top of the cylinder are on an angle to the axis of the cylinder and the combustion chamber is on the long side of the cylinder, the exhaust and intake valves having stems positioned normal to the combustion chamber.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a valve operating arrangement in which one valve is located partly over the combustion chamber.

A further object of the invention is to provide a valve operating arrangement of the character referred to in which the camshaft is located between the intake and exhaust valve stems.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a valve operating arrangement of this type having valve actuating rocker arms partly rotatable on a rocker arm shaft located above and parallel to the camshaft.

Another object of the invention is to provide such a valve operating arrangement in which the rocker arms are equipped with shoes to contact the cams.

Another object of the invention is to provide a valve operating arrangement of the character referred to in which the rocker arms have screw adjustable ball and socket slidable components with the valve stems, and locking means for the adjustable screw.

And finally it is an object of the invention to generally improve and simplify valve operating arrangements for internal combustion reciprocating engmes.

These and other objects, apparent from the drawings and following description, may be attained, the above described difficulties overcome and the advantages and results obtained, by the apparatus, construction, arrangement and combinations, subcombinations and parts which comprise the present invention, a preferred embodiment of which, illustrative of the best mode in which applicant has contemplated applying the principles, being set forth in detail in the following description and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the upper portion of a cylinder and a cylinder head of a four-cycle, internal combustion, reciprocating engine embodying the invention;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of a cylinder, cylinder head, valves and combustion chamber of the engine to which the invention pertains;

FIG. 3 is a section on the line 33, FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a section on the line 4-4, FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a vertical section of the upper portion of a cylinder and piston and the cylinder head of a twocycle uniflow type of engine embodying the invention;

FIG. 6 is a plan diagram as on the line 6-6, FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a section on the line 7--7, FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a section on the line 88, FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a vertical sectional view through the upper portion of a cylinder and piston and finder head of a two-cycle loop scavenging type of engine embodying the invention;

FIG. 10 is a section on the line 10--l0, FIG. 9; and

FIG. 11 is a detached side elevation of one of the pistons shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.

. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring first more particularly to the four-cycle engine shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive, in which similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout, the upper portion of a cylinder is shown at 1, a portion of a conventional water jacket at 2, a piston at 3, and the cylinder head is indicated generally at 4.

This engine differs from conventional reciprocating internal combustion engines particularly in that the upper end of the cylinder is located'at an angle to its axis as indicated at 5, and the upper end of the piston is located at the same angle as indicated at 6. The cylinder head 4 is also located at this angle.

The combustion chamber 7 is substantially round, preferably spherical, although it may be disc shaped, drum shaped, or cylindrical. A spherical swirl chamber is preferred to a disc or drum shape because it provides more circumference for the fuel spray of a pintle type spray nozzle. The disc shaped combustion chamber usually requires multiple orifice nozzle with two or more holes normal to the disc axis,and these small holes or orifices are more difficult to maintain in condition than the pintle type nozzle. However, it can be made successful.

The centrifugal velocity in the sphere, with air at the density of the fuel injection period, renders the density at the outer periphery greater than that of the fuel droplets. This status aids in preventing fuel droplets and vapors, from the spray, from coming into contact with or near the combustion chamber walls until they are gasified and wholly or partially united with oxygen. Otherwise, the exhaust will have a blue smoke and foul smell. Moreover, carbonaceous deposits may accumulate on the combustion chamber walls.

The combustion chamber 7 is an improvement upon the Treiber patents combustion chamber and is intended to reduce the surface volume ratio, increase the percentage of air confined in the sphere and increase its centrifugal velocity, also to eliminate the cylinder wall heat abuse adjacent to the combustion chamber by making the top of the piston at an angle so that the bottom of the sphere is above the piston rings and thus permits better cylinder wall cooling. The angle of the piston top is matched with this same angle of the cylinder top so that the head is also at this same angle.

Also, the inlet and exhaust valves, being nearly flush with the bottom of the head, may be increased in diameter to provide better breathing. Although the surface-volume ratio of the combustion chamber is slightly increased, the gain in breathing, thus increasing the power capacity, far' outweighs the small added loss of radiation. it provides an engine of much greater power capacity for no more cost of construction. The power gain should be at least 16 percent, which is only 20 percent of the increase in inlet port area over a conventional type head.

The total increased width available for both valves is proportional to the secant of the angle plus the overlap on the combustion chamber. The location of the inlet valve, partly over the combustion chamber, not only gives added breathing area but also directs the breathing, in part, through the combustion chamber to aid in cooling these areas including the adjacent cylinder wall.

The arrangement of valves at the side of the cylinder head instead of in line with the crankshaft, which is the usual manner, coupled with their wider spread due to the angle and overlap, permits the camshaft to be located between the valve stems with symmetrical opposite side rocker arms swinging on a common rocker arm shaft above the camshaft. The camshaft may be driven from the crankshaft by belt, gears or chain.

This arrangement permits very low acceleration values of the valve operating mechanism with the absence of the push rods and tappets and thus provides a basically quieter engine. The maintenance is about equal or less than any conventional valve operating mechanism. The proposed location of the fuel spray noule is such as to direct the fuel spray toward the inlet valve which can be designed with respect to seat width to keep it hot enough to repel or gasify any fuel spray droplets that may penetrate the entire distance of the combustion chamber, in which case they will adhere thereto and accumulate a carbonaceous mass to interfere with good engine operation-even unto a failure.

The lip in the Treiber patents (US. Pat. Nos. 2,091,894 and 2,172,526) combustion chamber was used to prevent this accumulation on the piston but it never was perfect, often resulting in scratched or scored cylinders by the carbonaceous mass pressing against the cylinder wall. The proposed execution will mitigate this objection, in fact, should eliminate it completely. Also, the combustion chamber is located at one side of the cylinder, a portion 8 thereof being formed in the cylinder and the remainder thereof being formed in the piston, as indicated at 9. This forms a lip or weir 10 at the upper edge of the piston.

An intake port area 1 1 is formed in the cylinder head 4 and may communicate with a conventional intake manifold. An exhaust port area 12 is also formed in the cylinder head and may communicate with a conventional exhaust manifold.

The inlet valve 13 may be of conventional construction, and is normally held in raised or closed position by the coil spring 14. The exhaust valve 15 is also of conventional construction and is held in raised or closed position by the coil spring 16.

The camshaft of the engine is shown at 17, and above it is a rocker shaft 18 upon which are a pair of rocker arms 19 and 20 operated by the camshaft to open the inlet valve 13 and exhaust valve 15, respectively.

Each rocker arm 19 and 20 has a threaded aperture 24 in its upper end, through which is located an adjusting screw 25 having a nut 26 upon its upper end. A ball 27 is formed in the lower end of each adjusting screw 25 and fits into a socket 28 in the flanged cap 29 of the valve stem. Shoes 30 are formed upon the lower ends of the rocker arms 19 and 20 for contact with the cams 31 upon the camshaft 17.

One or more of many means of ignition may be located in the combustion chamber 7, such as a spark, stream of sparks, hot sparks, glow plug, cold plug, torch, hot spot or pin, or catalysts of various kinds. For the purpose of illustration, a conventional spark plug 21 is shown.

For the purpose of injecting liquid fuel into the combustion chamber, a fuel spray nozzle 22 is provided and is so located as to direct the spray of fuel away from the relatively cold walls of the combustion chamber and toward the inlet valve or cylinder head.

A heat shield 22a of high heat flow material is located around the nozzle holder and nozzle 22 from outside the cylinder to the combustion chamber and extends over the inner end of the nozzle tip with a hole in its center for the fuel spray to pass through, as shown in FIG. 1.

The fuel injection and proper spray pattern, point of injection, duration of injection, distribution of fuel and velocity of fuel spray are relatively simple problems because fuel injection equipment is quite well developed.

The problem of mixing the fuel with the combustion air is considerably more difficult to solve. It has been demonstrated that the principal requirement for success is turbulence of the combustion air to a much greater extent than the carburetor requirements where fuel is more volatile and less cohesive. The directional flow of air into the cylinder by using a weir on the inlet has many obstacles for continuity of operation as also the interference with good breathing. The only moving part to generate air turbulence is the piston which forms part of the combustion chamber walls.

The shape of a portion of the piston is commonly made to induce turbulence as also to form a combustion chamber. However, it has limitations in making a suitable combustion chamber that will give room to shoot the fuel spray and produce adequate and proper turbulence to utilize the high percentage of combustion oxygen (95 percent or more) at the proper time and rate.

Many combustion chamber shapes and fuel sprays have been tried and found wanting. One common objection is that they increase the surface-to-volume ratio so much as to reduce the thermal efficiency by added radiation of heat to the coolant. A compromise must be made, especially in high-speed, high-powered engines.

By placing the combustion chamber toward the side of thecylinder, at least partly in the cylinder, the piston covers the passageway as it travels up and pushes the combustion air from the cylinder into the combustion chamber.

The piston 3 is run to just barely mechanical clearance with the head 4, so that sensibly all air is pressed into the spherical combustion chamber 7 tangentially to produce a revolving motion which amounts to about five revolutions during the fuel injection period, thus doing a very good job of mixing fuel and air.

The fuel spray is partly bent toward the spark plug 21, or other ignition device, by the combustion air being pushed into the combustion chamber 7 where its leading edge is ignited and further combustion propagates as additional fuel is injected.

The combustion process starts at a predetermined point in piston travel and continues smooth and uninterrupted with additional turbulence on the downward stroke as the combustion products emerge from the combustion chamber to the space between the piston and cylinder head.

In FIGS. 5 to 8 is shown a uniflow two-cycle engine embodying the invention. A cylinder is indicated at l, a cooling jacket therefor at 2 and the piston at 3.

As the four-cycle embodiment of the invention, the top of the cylinder is located at an angle to its axis as indicated at 5 and the tip of the piston is located at the same angle as shown at 6'. The cylinder head 4 is also located at the same angle.

The combustion chamber 7' isformed one-half in the cylinder as indicated at 8' and one-half in the piston as shown at 9. There is no inlet valve, air being admitted from the outside through the three inlet ports 23, which are opened near the outward stroke of the piston to admit air under pressure above atmospheric pressure into the cylinder to scavenge the burned gas and recharge the cylinder with fresh air. One port 23 is directly opposite the combustion chamber with its inlet walls slanting downward, as shown in FIG. 7, and the other two ports 23 have their inlet walls slanting upward, as shown in FIG. 8. This permits the center inlet stream to pass into the cylinder between the piston and the two air streams from the other two inlet ports 23, as to meet each other and diffuse in directions to more perfectly scavenge the cylinder of gas as the air fills the cylinder and combustion chamber and pushes the burned gas out of the open exhaust valve or valves.

The exhaust port area is indicated at 12-. There may be one or more valves, one of which is shown at 15. The coil spring 16' normally holds the same in closed position as shown in FIG. 5. The exhaust valves are properly timed with respect to the crankshaft with any conventional mechanical means of opening and closing to provide an opening to the atmosphere for the burned gas to escape. The engine camshaft l7 depresses the exhaust valve 15' to open position at the proper time against the pressure of the spring 16'. A spark plug or other means of ignition, as indicated at 21', is located in the combustion chamber. A spray nozzle 22 is inserted into the combustion chamber to spray liquid fuel therein as above described and may be protected by a heat shield 22a of high heat flow material, as described above in connection with FIG. 1.

In FIGS. 9 to 11 inclusive is shown a two-cycle loop scavenging engine embodying the invention. The cylinders are indicated at 1" provided with a cooling jacket 2". Each piston 3" is of the shape shown in the drawings, the upper end being located at an angle as indicated at 6" corresponding to the upper end 5" of the corresponding cylinder. The cylinder head 4" is located at this same angle. The combustion chamber 7" is located half in the cylinder and half in the piston as indicated at 8" and 9", respectively.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the combustion chamber portion 9" in the piston is shaped to provide a baffle 9a to direct the inlet air streams toward the cylinder head and the cylinder portion of the combustion chamber from where the inlet air is looped across the cylinder against the cylinder head and along the cylinder wall to the exhaust ports to provide loop scavenging and recharging the cylinder with fresh air for the following compression stroke, fuel injection, ignition and power stroke pushing the piston outward to finally uncover the exhaust ports, and permit pressure blow down followed by the inlet ports being opened to again scavenge and recharge the cylinder.

A spark plug or other ignition means is inserted into the ignition chamber as indicated at 21", and a fuel spray nozzle 22' is inserted through the cylinder head into the combustion chamber and directed toward the spark plug or other means of ignition. The spray nozzle may be protected by a heat shield 22a" of the character above described.

This engine may be valveless, air being admitted through the intake ports bustion being discharged through the exhaust ports 25.

24 and the gases of com In the two-cycle types of engine, the intake air would loop the cylinder and combustion chamber in port scavenging execution to provide good scavenging. The exhaust valves or ports and inlet ports may be located to provide some supercharging. A fairly high scavenging air pressure is contemplated, especially for high speeds and supercharging. As illustrated, the port scavenging engine would be valveless. Either one offers a possibility of producing a great deal more power than a nonsupercharged four-cycle engine of the same displacement.

However, it appears reasonable that the four-cycle engine may be sufficiently supercharged to nearly equal the power output of the two-cycle engine of similar displacement.

From the above it will be evident that an internal combustion reciprocating engine is provided in which a fuel spray and air are mixed in the combustion chamber so that a high' percentage of oxygen, that is 95 percent or more, in the combustion air is united with the fuel at the right time and rate for the best power and economy, and in which the fuel spray is artificially ignited within the combustion chamber.

lt will also be seen that the improved engine permits the optimum of compression ratio for best power and economy, about 11 to 1, permits ease in starting cold, and eliminates carbon monoxide gas in the exhaust.

Also, it will be obvious that the improved engine eliminates the fuel knock" which exists in diesel engines due to rapidity of pressure rise when the fuel is i gnited by the heat of compression.

Furthermore, it will be seen that it eliminates the time lag of ignition, about 0.005 of a second, which exists in diesels or compression ignition engines at any and all RPM and prevents the practical increase in RPM of about 2,300 RPM without excessive loss of thermal efficiency and/or excessive rate and amount of pressure rise with its attending fuel knock.

The improved engine also permits of reduction in weight per horsepower from diesel engines because most parts, particularly cylinder blocks, heads and flywheel, can be made similar to gasoline engines.

Also, the indicated mean effective pressure (IMEP) will be increased over both gasoline and diesel engines because of the higher expansion ratio of the combustion gases with lower losses from dissociation and also from better breathing ability.

The improved engine will develop greater power than diesels because of higher IMEP and RPM and lower friction, made possible because of lighter reciprocating parts, less compression and maximum pressure and fewer compression rings.

There will be a reduction of free colloidal carbon, black smoke, in the exhaust gases compared with in diesel engines, made possible by artificial ignition, thus eliminating the cracking of fuel molecules which occurs in a compression ignition engine.

I claim:

1. A valve operating arrangement for an internal combustion reciprocating engine having a cylinder formed with a bore extending therethrough; a cylinder head closing one end of the cylinder bore, the cylinder head face covering the cylinder at an oblique angle to the axis of the cylinder; a piston reciprocating in the cylinder bore; a combustion chamber formed partly by a recess in th lon sidew l of the c linder and the remainder in t e a acent i de of the giston when the piston is at the outer end of the stroke, the top of the piston and the top of the cylinder being at the same angle to the axis of the cylinder as said cylinder head face; intake and exhaust valves mounted in the cylinder head, the intake valve being located partly over the cylinder and partly beyond the cylinder over the recess therein forming the combustion chamber; said valves having their stems positioned normal to said cylinder head face and parallel to each other; an engine camshaft located in the cylinder head between the intake and exhaust valve stems; a single rocker arm shaft between said valve stems and located above and parallel to the camshaft; valve actuating rocker arms face said intake and exhaust valves partly rotatable on said rocker arm shaft, the rocker arms having screw adjustable ball and socket means slidably engaged with the valve stems; and locking means for the adjustable screw. 

1. A valve operating arrangement for an internal combustion reciprocating engine having a cylinder formed with a bore extending therethrough; a cylinder head closing one end of the cylinder bore, the cylinder head face covering the cylinder at an oblique angle to the axis of the cylinder; a piston reciprocating in the cylinder bore; a combustion chamber formed partly by a recess in the long sidewall of the cylinder and the remainder in the adjacent side of the piston when the piston is at the outer end of the stroke, the top of the piston and the top of the cylinder being at the same angle to the axis of the cylinder as said cylinder head face; intake and exhaust valves mounted in the cylinder head, the intake valve being located partly over the cylinder and partly beyond the cylinder over the recess therein forming the combustion chamber; said valves having their stems positioned normal to said cylinder head face and parallel to each other; an engine camshaft located in the cylinder head between the intake and exhaust valve stems; a single rocker arm shaft between said valve stems and located above and parallel to the camshaft; valve actuating rocker arms face said intake and exhaust valves partly rotatable on said rocker arm shaft, the rocker arms having screw adjustable ball and socket means slidably engaged with the valve stems; and locking means for the adjustable screw. 